Chapter 20: Echoes in the Ruins I

Kai kicked through the Spire's debris, boots crunching over shattered relic-panels, the sky above flickering—a cracked dome of relic-light, pulsing erratically like a dying star. Dust hung thick, coating his gray hair, his wrinkled hands trembling as he gripped the dim stash, its glow faint but steady. The Spire's collapse had left a graveyard—twisted metal, broken runes, the air sharp with ozone and ruin.

Lena stalked beside him, her arm bandaged tight, her dagger scraping a slab as she scanned the wreckage. "Kael's trail's here somewhere," she muttered, her voice rough, edged with impatience. "Better find it before his dogs do."

Kai nodded, his mark sparking faintly—aging his fingers, then snapping back—his eyes tracing the rubble. "He didn't vanish—left something. Look sharp."

Markus limped behind, his cane sinking into ash, his aged frame trembling but resolute. "Syndicate scouts'll sweep soon," he rasped, coughing dust. "This mess won't hide us long."

Quiet woman flanked them, her knife glinting, her whitened hair catching the flicker as she hauled Tali along—the frail girl stumbled, gray hair limp, her hands empty but clenched. "She's dragging us," quiet woman said, her tone flat, sharp. "Barely walking."

Tali's breath hitched, her voice a whisper. "I—I can keep up…" She straightened, frail but defiant, her eyes darting to Kai.

"Stay with us," he said, pressing the stash to her chest—its light flared, faint but warm, steadying her. "We're not splitting."

Lena snorted, kicking a relic-shard. "Soft, Voss—always soft. She's a chain, and we're sinking."

"She's alive," Kai shot back, his tone hard, turning to a cracked console half-buried in debris. Its runes glowed weakly, Syndicate marks etched deep—familiar, too familiar. "Here—something's off."

Markus hobbled closer, squinting. "Old relay—pre-Spire," he muttered, tracing it with his cane. "Kael's escape—could've pinged it."

Quiet woman knelt, her knife prying at a slab—metal groaned, revealing a broken device, its core pulsing faintly. "Signal's live," she said, her eyes narrowing. "He's sloppy—or baiting us."

Kai crouched, the stash pulsing in sync with the device—his mark flared, a sting up his arm. "Bait or not, it's a lead. We take it."

The sky flickered harder, a low hum rising—distant, mechanical. Lena tensed, her dagger up. "Scouts—close," she hissed, peering through the haze. Shadows moved—relic-lights cutting the dust, boots on stone.

"Hide," Kai whispered, shoving them behind a slab—his mark dimmed, the stash's glow tucked under his jacket. The hum grew, Syndicate eyes closing in, and he knew: Kael's trail was here, but time was bleeding out.

Kai knelt behind the slab, the stash's faint glow seeping through his jacket, his mark sparking—sharp, unsteady, aging his hand as the Syndicate device pulsed in the dirt. The ruins stretched silent, relic-sky flickering overhead, but the hum of scouts buzzed closer—boots grinding stone, relic-lights sweeping the haze. His team crouched low—Lena's dagger up, Markus's cane still, quiet woman shielding Tali.

"Signal's live—Kael's," quiet woman whispered, her knife poised over the device. "Rigged, maybe—touch it, and we're lit."

Kai nodded, his mark flaring brighter—time stuttered, and the ruins faded. A vision hit—Mara, clear as blood: a Syndicate chamber, cold and gray, her kneeling, relic-light flaring as she aged fast. "For you," she rasped, her voice breaking, hands pressing the mark into his—dust spilled, her eyes locked on his, fading. The stash burned in her grip, then dimmed, her last breath a gift.

He staggered, the vision snapping—his mark burned, his arm trembling, gray hair spilling into his eyes. "Mara…" he muttered, the ache raw, sharp.

"Voss—snap out!" Lena hissed, grabbing his shoulder—her bandaged arm shook, her glare fierce. "What's wrong?"

"She traded—for me," he rasped, shaking it off, the stash pulsing in his hands. "This stash—it's hers. Kael took her."

Markus squinted, his cane tapping. "Beacon's his—coordinates," he said, peering at the device's runes. "He's moving—north, deep city."

Quiet woman pried it free, dust spilling—a faint beep started, growing shrill. "Trap," she snapped, dropping it—relic-light flared, a pulse shooting skyward.

"Shit—move!" Kai yelled, hauling Tali up—the beep spiked, scouts shouting through the haze: "Signal—there!" Boots thundered, lights closing.

Lena slashed at a slab, clearing a path—her voice a growl. "Kael's playing us—knew we'd bite."

"He's scared," Kai said, his mark sparking as he shoved them forward—time bent, slowing a scout's bolt mid-air, dust bursting. "Means we're close."

The device's beep turned to a wail—relic-sky flared red, a shadow looming overhead. Markus glanced up, his face grim. "Airship—big one," he rasped, his aged leg dragging.

Quiet woman pulled Tali tight, her knife ready. "No cover—run or die."

Kai gripped the stash, its light dim but alive—Kael's trail burned in his skull, Mara's sacrifice sharper. "Run," he said, leading them through the ruins, the airship's hum a roar behind.